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Malta

HAS ENDORSED THE POLITICAL DECLARATION

Malta was involved in the process to develop a Political Declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas, and was among the first group of states to endorse the Political Declaration in Dublin in November 2022. In the early stages of consultation, it was among several states who opposed the use of qualifiers, defending the use of the expression “arising from” instead of “can arise”, and welcomed the draft Declaration’s acknowledgement of reverberating effects.1 At the fourth consultation in April 2022, Malta welcomed the inclusion of schools and educational facilities in Section 3, and underlined the importance of regular training of military personnel and the adoption of national policies and practices intended to protect civilians.2

Statements and positions

Malta has on several occasions spoken on explosive weapons in populated areas in multilateral forums. At the UN Security Council open debate on war in cities: on 25 January 2022, Malta welcomed the development of the Political Declaration and called on parties to conflict to avoid the use of explosive weapons in populated areas.3 Later that year, at the UN Security Council open debate on the protection of civilians on 25 May 2022, Malta encouraged states to pursue synergies between the Call for Humanitarian Action, the Safe Schools Declaration and the Political Declaration on explosive weapons in populated areas.4

Alongside its individual statements, Malta has repeatedly aligned with other states to deliver statements on explosive weapons in populated areas. As a member of the European Union (EU), Malta has signed onto numerous joint statements condemning the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and the harms it causes to civilians and civilian objects, as well as calling for greater IHL compliance. This includes at several UN Security Council open debates on the protection of civilians in armed conflict 5 and at the General Debate of UN General Assembly First Committee6, as well as at the 2022 UN Security Council open debate on War in Cities where the EU expressed concern over the indiscriminate use of explosive weapons in populated areas, including near hospitals, schools, and universities.7 The EU, with Malta signing on, has also repeatedly welcomed the Political Declaration on explosive weapons in populated areas – at the 2022 Dublin Conference, the 2022 and 2023 UN General Assembly First Committee (where it highlighted the work ahead for implementing the Declaration’s commitments), and at the 2023 UN Security Council open debate on the Protection of Civilians.

Malta aligned with the World Humanitarian Summit Core Commitment to ‘Uphold the Norms that Safeguard Humanity’ in its national capacity and as an EU member state. This included the commitment “to promote and enhance the protection of civilians and civilian objects, especially in the conduct of hostilities, for instance by working to prevent civilian harm resulting from the use of wide-area explosive weapons in populated areas, and by sparing civilian infrastructure from military use in the conduct of military operations.”8

In 2018 and 2019, Malta joined some 50 and 71 states respectively to endorse joint statements on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas at the UN General Assembly First Committee, calling attention to the devastating and long-lasting humanitarian impact of the use of explosive weapons in populated areas and urging states to reverse the trend of high levels of civilian harm.9

  1. Rafferty, J., Geyer, K., Acheson, R., 2021. ‘Report on the March 2021 consultations on a Political Declaration on the use of explosive weapons in populated areas’. Reaching Critical Will. 21 March 2021. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/news/latest-news/15213-report-on-the-march-2021-consultations-on-a-political-declaration-on-the-use-of-explosive-weapons-in-populated-areas.

  2. Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. ‘Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas – Political Declaration Consultations, Day 1 Afternoon’. Available from:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPllKWRMlNg.

  3. Acheson, R. 2022. ‘UN Security Council Debates War in Cities and the Protection of Civilians.’ Reaching Critical Will, 28 January 2022. https://www.reachingcriticalwill.org/news/latest-news/16009-un-security-council-debates-war-in-cities-and-the-protection-of-civilians.

  4. United Nations Security Council. S/PV.9042. 25 May 2022. Available from: https://undocs.org/en/S/PV.9042(Resumption1).

  5. ‘EU Statement during the May 2011 Security Council Open Debate on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 10 May 2011.  http://www.peacewomen.org/sites/default/files/eu_poc_11may2011_0.pdf; ‘EU Statement during the June 2012 Security Council Open Debate on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 25 June 2012. http://www.peacewomen.org/security-council/security-council-open-debate-protection-civilians-armed-conflict-june-2012/; ‘EU Statement during the August 2013 UN Security Council Open Debate on the Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 19 August 2013. http://www.peacewomen.org/sites/default/files/european_union_poc_august_2013_debate_0.pdf.

  6. ‘EU Statement to the UN General Assembly 72nd Session First Committee Thematic Discussion on Conventional Weapons’. Permanent Mission of the European Union to the United Nations. 18 October 2017. https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/1com17/statements/18Oct_EU.pdf.

  7. Acheson, R. 2022. ‘UN Security Council Debates War in Cities and the Protection of Civilians.’ Reaching Critical Will, 28 January 2022. https://www.reachingcriticalwill.org/news/latest-news/16009-un-security-council-debates-war-in-cities-and-the-protection-of-civilians.

  8. Agenda for Humanity Archives, ‘Malta’. https://agendaforhumanity.org/stakeholder/127.html.

  9. ‘UNGA73 First Committee Joint Statement on Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas (explosive weapons in populated areas)’. Permanent Mission of Ireland to the United Nations. 25 October 2018. .https://reachingcriticalwill.org/images/documents/Disarmament-fora/1com/1com18/statements/25Oct_explosive weapons in populated areas.pdf; ‘UNGA74 First Committee Joint Statement on Explosive Weapons in Populated Areas’. Permanent Mission of Ireland to the United Nations. 24 October 2019. Available from https://article36.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/UNGA74-joint-statement-on-explosive-weapons-in-populated-areas.pdf; ‘Seventy-one States call for Action on Impact of Explosive Weapons in Joint Statement to UN General Assembly’. International Network on Explosive Weapons. October 2019. Available from: https://www.inew.org/seventy-one-states-call-for-action-on-impact-of-explosive-weapons-in-joint-statement-to-un-general-assembly/.

Other State Positions